The state-owned Oschadbank (Kyiv) is preparing for a due diligence by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) to prepare for a pre-privatization deal, Oschadbank CEO Serhiy Naumov has said.
“The bank is actively negotiating and preparing a pre-privatization deal with the EBRD. Currently, we are completing negotiations on signing a mandate letter and preparing for due diligence,” he told Interfax-Ukraine on Tuesday.
According to Naumov, the bank expects that a bill that was registered in the parliament, aimed at joining Oschadbank to the Deposit Guarantee Fund, will be passed soon. The document will ensure the fulfillment of one of the important conditions for continuing successful cooperation with the EBRD.
As reported, the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine in February 2018, as part of an updated strategy for reforming the public banking sector, planned to gradually include Oschadbank into the Deposit Guarantee Fund system. According to the memorandum with the IMF, concluded in December of the same year, the full state guarantee of deposits of individuals in Oschadbank was supposed to be canceled by the end of 2019. This step will open the way for the EBRD to enter the capital of Oschadbank.
Oschadbank was founded in 1991. Its sole owner is the state. According to the statistics of the National Bank, as of March 1, 2021, Oschadbank ranked second in terms of total assets (UAH 279.702 billion) among 73 banks operating in the country.
